How to play Rocket League: With Epic Games making Rocket League free to play, here’s a detailed guide for many new players about to enter the game.
Rocket League is almost always a very competitive game. Also, though the game, in general, is easy to understand, it can be very hard to progress early on. So, here is a detailed guide on how you can start playing the game the right way.
How to play Rocket League: The very basics.
Rocket League is inspired by football (soccer). In fact, much of it is based on the real sport. The game has a ball and a goal. Your aim as a player is to put the ball in the goal. However, there’s a twist. You have cars instead of people! Also, these cars don’t move around like ordinary cars. They’re like cars on weed. Jumping, boosting, twirling, smashing and not to mention SCORING is not what cars usually do.
Just like football, Rocket League also has a field. But, there are a few quirks to it. Let’s get these out of the way first. So, the field is divided into 4 quadrants by two lanes. You’ll start at the end of one of these lanes. For a kickoff, a car from each team rushes for the ball and tries to get it asap. Then the game begins. The field has walled ramps on all sides. The cars use these to get up in the air or run along the wall. There are also boosts in each corner of the field. These are very important. They give your car that extra oomph to make power moves in a game. And you’ll need a lot of those. So, try to make as many trips to the boost spots as possible.
How to play Rocket League: Movement and Contact.
First things first, dribbling and ball control. It is very important to use the free play mode in the game to better these skills. What you need to do is understand how contact between a ball and a car works. So, remember, the front of your car is always the strongest part. Then, the side, the top and finally the bottom. So, use each side based on how hard or softly you want to touch the ball.
This brings us to dribbling. Here, just like in football, you’ll want to keep the ball close to you and run with it. Er… I mean drive. In a game, this is very useful when there are no players around you. Once you understand how ball contact works, you’ll be able to dribble better. So, practice!
Next, we have off-ball basics. As most of you will know from football, what you do without the ball is way more important than what you do with it. Therefore, in Rocket League, it is important to follow a method called rotation. It’s very simple. Let’s say you’re playing the 2v2 mode (the game also has 1v1, 3v3 and 4v4 modes). Here, you and your opponent will want to occupy two different positions on the pitch. As each of you go after the ball and out of your position, your teammate will come in and take your place. On the other hand, once you lose the ball, you will take his. In defence, these positions are of a goaltender and a ball clearer. In offence, of a midfield attacker and a centerer. Weird names! I know!
Tactics and methods: Defence.
Since all of you have understood the basics, let’s focus on the most important part of the game – your approach.
In the beginning, although you have learnt how to play the game, you may still find yourself losing. That is because many times, you don’t play it right.
First of all, the rule of thumb, always know that defence is more important than offence. So, the first thing you need to learn is goaltending. This is a lot like goalkeeping in football. However, it is a lot more flexible. Always keep track of your goal when out of it. This way, you rush back to it quickly when needed. Otherwise, the other team will score while you’re still wondering which way to run. Secondly, once you’ve rushed to the goal, learn to predict shots and parry them. Common sense, right? The ball contact practice, we talked of above, will help a lot with this. You should always try to parry the ball to your player.
When not in goal, your focus should be on clearing the ball coming your way as a ball clearer. But, always check where you’re about to hit the ball. You don’t want to clear it into your opponent’s path. Then, they have a free pass and you may be in trouble.
Tactics and methods: Offence.
Finally, offence! The way the game works is, you push forward from a good defence and counter on offence. So, try to parry the ball when in goal to your teammate. Then, as they take it and move up the field, you run for support. Try to get into a position where they can pass. To score, you can try a few things. First, tap and smash. For this, just lob the ball softly up in the air with your hood. Then jump and ram it hard. A well-aimed shot will zoom towards the net. In case this is no good, you can also try to dribble and score. For this, you need to be a decent dribbler by now. Just run with the ball at the goalie. Then, change the ball-direction at the last second and shoot into the net. If well-timed, you’ll beat them easily.
You can also try a third technique – faking. However, this is usually for more advanced and calmer players. Just dribble up to your opponent with the ball. Feint with your car one way. But don’t touch the ball! The player will predict your move and rush the other way. But, since you did not touch the ball or change its direction, they’ll be left high and dry running into thin air. As a result, you have an empty net to score.
That’s it for now. Do these and you should be up and running. Remember the game can get a little toxic. So, play it cool and have fun.
Best of luck!
Additional Guides:
The guide above is mainly for beginners. For more detailed guides to totally master the game, check out the links below.
